Zimplats (ASX:ZIM): If you thought there were no platinum miners on the ASX, you were wrong!

Anyone suggesting the only way to gain exposure to platinum on the ASX was through explorers and developers clearly haven’t heard of Zimplats (ASX:ZIM). It is a company that has slipped under the radar of many Australian investors, but for how much longer?

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Overview of Zimplats

Zimplats has actually been listed since 1998, having begun life not too long prior to that when mining interests held by Delta Gold on the Zimbabwe Great Dyke were separated into a vehicle focused on platinum group metals (PGMs). Since 2000, it has been majority owned by Impala Platinum (i.e. >80%) and the rest of the shares are split between the ASX and the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.

The core of Zimplats’ value is the Great Dyke, a geologically rich, PGM-bearing feature that hosts significant platinum, palladium, rhodium, iridium and ruthenium reserves — collectively called platinum group metals. The company’s broader Ngezi mining complex has moved from open-pit to predominantly underground operations with multiple portals, concentrators, and a smelter at Selous.

Annual production figures have consistently showed hundreds of thousands of ounces of PGMs sold annually, alongside some nickel, gold, copper, cobalt and silver by-products. In its most recent annual result (for FY25, the 12 months to June 30, 2025), the company reaped US$826m in revenue, a US$106.3m gross profit (up 29%) and a US$40.5m net profit (up from US$8.2m the year before).

This was from 606,343/oz of 6E (Platinum, Palladium, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and gold). The latter figure was an amount actually down 6% from the year before, but the company made a better return due to higher commodity prices.

Why PGMs are in demand

Platinum and its siblings have both industrial and investment appeal. The most obvious is in the automotive space.

Platinum, palladium and rhodium are critical in catalytic converters to reduce harmful emissions from petrol and diesel engines. Even as electric vehicles grow, internal combustion and hybrid engines are expected to remain a material part of vehicle fleets for years, supporting ongoing PGM demand.

But they offer exposure in direct ways too – platinum is a key catalyst in hydrogen fuel cells and electrolysers, positioning it as a strategic metal in decarbonisation and hydrogen economy applications. Iridium and ruthenium also have roles in next-generation catalysts and energy tech.

Beyond demand dynamics, supply dynamics are favourable too (well, for investors anyway). Global PGM supply is concentrated in Southern Africa and Russia, with limited new investment in greenfield projects.

Recent platinum price strength has reflected tightening markets, low above-ground stocks and rising recycling but not enough new supply to meet demand. Many analysts view this as a structural backdrop for the metal group over the medium term.

Of course, cyclicality is inherent — prices can fall when automotive demand weakens or if supply increases — the long-term role in emissions control and hydrogen technologies provides a structural underpinning.

Is Zimplats The Best Way to Gain Exposure to Platinum?

If you define ‘the best way’ as ‘the most direct way’, then yes because it is the most direct producer of PGMs. You could argue Chalice will be once Julimar is in production, but that is at least 3 years away. Other miners with exposure to platinum only have exposure as a secondary exposure, focused on gold, iron ore, copper or lithium first.

That said, investors need to keep in mind that there are alternative exposure paths on the ASX — for example, thematic ETFs that hold physical platinum, or junior explorers with PGM prospects.

The downside is that none match Zimplats for actual production scale. But the upside with those companies and downside with Zimplats is that the lack of ownership by investors other than Impala limit liquidity and institutional interest.

Moreover, Zimbabwe carries sovereign and operational risks that investors price differently than Australia or North America. Zimbabwe has been relatively safe recently, but so often declaring a country in that part of the world is safe is often a kiss of death.

Conclusion

To make a long story short, Zimplats is one of the few pure ASX ways to get direct equity exposure to platinum group metals production, and it benefits from actual mining revenue rather than project speculation. However, investors should be mindful of jurisdictional, operational and metal price cyclicality when comparing it with other ASX sectors or diversified global miners.